Barons Escape with 3-1 Win Over Shrimp

The Birmingham Barons (60-65) used a solid pitching performance from starter Matt Tomshaw and a strong third inning at the plate to take game two of their series over the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (50-73) 3-1 on Monday night at the Baseball Ground of Jacksonville.

• Facts And Figures: Tomshaw (W, 5-7) faced his former team on Monday night and had a solid outing as he recorded his ninth quality start of the year, giving up one run on five hits with seven strikeouts over 6.0 innings. He pitched against Jacksonville for the second time this season and now has won both of those starts.   
• Moments That Mattered: In the top of the third Danny Mendick led off with a double and two batters later Joel Booker was able to drive him in with an RBI double breaking the scoreless tie and giving the Barons a 1-0 lead. Booker finished 3-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI from the leadoff spot.
• Turning Point: The next hitter, Luis Basabe drove his sixth home run of the season, a two-run shot, over the right field wall extending the Barons lead to 3-0 as a part of a three-run third inning. That proved to be too much for the home team to overcome.
• By The Numbers: After Tomshaw's quality start, the bullpen was quick to finish out the win. Zach Thompson came in in relief and continued the strong pitching by throwing 2.0 clean innings with two strikeouts, allowing two hits and no runs. José Ruiz (S, 13) came in in the bottom of the ninth and was able to close the door by striking out Eric Jagielo to strand the tying runs on base and record his team-leading 13th save of the season.
• Up Next: The Barons and the Jumbo Shrimp will play game three of the series on Tuesday night with first pitch slated for 6:05 p.m. Bernardo Flores (2-4, 2.93) will get the start for the Barons, while Robert Dugger (5-5, 4.53) gets the nod for the Jumbo Shrimp. Curt Bloom will have the call on 960 WERC News Radio and the iHeart Radio app.